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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: net · march · track · hide · sharp · tube · land · vault

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. tube — the underground
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. march — the month
  6. track — a song
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. land — a country
  10. land — to come down
  11. net — for catching
  12. vault — a safe
  13. sharp — clever
  14. track — to keep track
  15. net — in sport
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. tube — a container
  19. track — a path
  20. net — after costs
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. land — ground
  23. march — the month
  24. sharp — exactly

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com